Armed and Dangerous
by Scuzzfuzz
Summary: She's armed. He's dangerous...or is he? AH, AU, OOC. Rated M for language and possible future lemons.
1. Prologue

**A/N: **I do not own Twilight – just these crazy versions of Stephenie Meyer's characters that won't leave me alone!

The idea for this story came to me last night while I was laying in bed, trying to get to sleep. I figured getting it on paper was probably a good way to get it out of my head. Please leave me a review and let me know if you think it's worth continuing!

I can't guarantee how often I'll update – I never wanted to have two stories on the go at once, but 'Jasper's Story' is still up and running – do me favour and check it out! I'll aim for once a week, but please don't hold me to that!

Happy reading!

Prologue

"No way. No fucking way! I am not going to work for that pretty-boy man-whore!" I yelled in a rage at my EA over the intercom.

Not ten seconds later she came bursting through my door.

"Don't you ever knock?" I grumbled.

"Sit your ass down and listen," she said tersely, hands on hips.

_That's the problem with your best friend being your EA – you get the attitude_, I thought.

I sat in my leather chair and raised an eyebrow. "I'm waiting."

"You've been wanting to put this firm 'on the map' for the last two years, ever since you opened it. You get offered the contract to be the personal security officer for one of the biggest names in Tinseltown right now, and you're going to turn it down? Imagine what it could do for you - and for us! And they asked for _you_ – not the firm, but you specifically! Are you fucking crazy?" she demanded

I opened my mouth to yell back and then closed it again. She had a point. And she knew it. The smirk on her face told me so.

"Fuck it Alice! Have you seen him? That fucking smirk, the playboy attitude? He's got women lining up outside whichever hotel he happens to be staying in, just waiting for him to come out so they can flash their boobs at him, hoping they'll be the next fuck buddy. And the drug rumours? That's not exactly the type of person I want associated with this firm, no matter how good the money is, or the kind of exposure it would get for us." I blew out a frustrated breath. "Organise a meeting with Mike and Angela for Monday morning – I want to see what they think about this. I'm going to take off, clear my head," I finished, standing up stretching.

"Bella," Alice said. She never used the shortened version of my name in the office. "I know you have some kind of history with this guy…"

I cut her off. "I do. And it's no-one's business but mine. End of story. See you Monday." I was rude, and I knew it.

_Alice might be the best EA in the world as well as being my best friend, but sometimes she just doesn't know when to stop with the questions. Funny, that's the reason I hired her_, I thought ironically as I waited for the elevator.

The ride to the basement parking lot was quick – straight from my offices on the seventh floor down. I unlocked the door to my black Jeep with the remote from ten paces away and immediately regretted it when the tall, russet-skinned man stepped from behind a pole.

"Isabella!" he called.

"Fuck off, Jacob," I spat back, pushing my way past him. He was close to a foot taller than I was, but an hour a day in the gym had made me strong for my size.

"Isabella, please! Listen to me!" There was nothing more pathetic than one of Hollywood's finest young actors begging.

I stopped and turned to face him, sliding my jacket to the side to show him I was armed. "Jacob, for the four hundred and ninety second time! I was hired to be your security officer while you promoted your last film...SIX MONTHS AGO! It was a job, I was paid, we're not friends and I don't want to be anything more!"

He hung his head and I instantly felt bad. I was a ball-busting bitch when I was working, but that didn't mean I was heartless as well. I took a step towards him and placed my hand on his massive forearm.

"Jacob, I'm sorry," I said sincerely.

My next words were cut short when his hand flew through the air and slapped me across the face. Reacting on instinct, I drove my left knee hard into his groin, elbowing him in the back of the head as he fell. I threw myself into the driver's seat of the Jeep, locking the doors and pulling my cell phone from my pocket.

"Swan Security, Alice speaking."

"Alice, its Bella. Call building security – Jacob Black is on the ground in the parking lot, cradling his goolies. Tell them I want to press assault charges and have an AVO taken out, banning him from here and my home," I barked down the phone.

"Bella, are you ok? What did he do?" Alice cried.

"I'm fine, and there'll be video evidence that I acted in self defence. But you'd better call Rosalie just in case," I replied.

"Crisis meeting at your place, seven o'clock?" she joked. Normally it would work and make me relax. Today? Not so much.

"Not fucking funny. I can't afford to get sued again. Call Rose, it's her turn to bring dinner. You bring the wine, I've already got the ice cream. See you then." I snapped my phone shut and reversed out of my space, making sure I didn't accidentally run over Jacob on my way.

_What a great fucking start to the weekend._


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N: **I do not own Twilight – just these crazy versions of Stephenie Meyer's characters that won't leave me alone!

Wow! Your reviews have been awesome, so yes, I'm going to continue. (I probably would have any way, but knowing there's support out there makes the decision a whole lot easier!)

Happy reading!

Chapter 1

"Fuck it, fuck it, fuck it," I chanted under my breath as I drove home.

The last thing I needed was another law suit. Three months earlier, a former male client had come into our offices while I was out. He had been angling for a date with the firm's receptionist the whole time we were working for him, but she wasn't interested. I walked in one day to find him holding her by the throat up against a wall. Without thinking I shouted some sort of insult at him. He dropped Kristen and turned on me. I didn't give him a chance to lay a finger on me – I had his arm twisted behind his back and inevitably broken before he could react.

Thanks to Rosalie and her expert bargaining skills we had managed to keep it out of court and out of the papers. Rose had made me promise to behave from then on in – I'd had three assault charges in the last twelve months and even though I had been found not guilty each time I just didn't need that kind of publicity.

I pulled into the driveway of my small home in Pasadena and hit the remote garage opener. After parking the Jeep I walked down and checked the mail, then headed back through the garage, closing the door before letting myself into the house.

I threw my keys onto the bench, bypassing the key rack that Alice had bought me for Christmas the year before. I pulled open the fridge and grabbed a beer, using the hem of my shirt to open it on my way to my back deck.

The house had been a bargain and the first thing I had done was install the small pool. Not really big enough to swim laps but still big enough to have a game of volleyball in, the blue water always calmed me down after a bad day.

I was still sitting on the pool chair, staring at the water and nursing my empty beer bottle when the doorbell rang, startling me. I headed back inside, dropping the bottle in the recycling on the way to the door where I found Rosalie in a pair of yoga pants and a tank top, holding a plastic bag full of what looked to be Thai food.

"I hear you had another run in with Jacob," she said, reaching out and giving me a one-armed hug before following me back to the kitchen.

"Bastard is lucky to still have his balls," I replied, making her laugh.

Alice arrived with two bottles of Pinot Grigio as Rose was serving up the food. I grabbed three wine glasses and Alice poured as I hooked up my iPod, sending Bon Jovi blaring through the house.

We ate outside, enjoying the warm breeze. After dinner and a wine refill, Rose asked the question. "So what happened?"

"Fucker cornered me in the parking garage, gutless shit was hiding behind a pole near the Jeep. I told him off, then felt bad, went to apologise, he slapped me so I kneed him in the balls and left him there to suffer," I summarised.

"Lawyer Rose for the last time tonight, I promise. Video footage?" she asked.

Alice answered. "Yes. I got it from security right after I called you – I have it inside."

"Excellent. Let the drinking begin!" Rose declared.

We each sat quietly, lost in our own thoughts for a while. I looked at my two best friends and wondered once again how the hell I was lucky enough to have them in my life.

I moved to LA just over two years ago and opened Swan Security, quickly hiring two high school friends, Mike Newton and Angela Weber. We ran the place on our own for the first couple of months and then decided we needed someone to answer the phones and keep the bills paid. We advertised in the newspaper and Alice applied. She was the perfect candidate – smart, organised and friendly, with the ability to be a hard-ass when it came down to it.

Alice and I became fast friends – she had only been in LA for a few months after moving from Biloxi. I met Rosalie one day when I was filing some forms at the court house, and it turned out she also knew Alice. The three of us had been practically inseparable since.

"Bella?" Alice asked, pulling me out of my reverie. "Why won't you take the Cullen job?"

Before I could answer, Rose jumped in. "Cullen? As in _Edward_ Cullen? You've been approached by his people? That's awesome!"

I shook my head. "It's really not," I said coldly.

"What the fuck do you mean, 'it's not'?" Rose asked. "He's the biggest name in Hollywood right now – talk about great publicity for the firm!"

"He's also the biggest wanker in Hollywood right now Rose!" I exclaimed. "I'm not taking the job."

"Shouldn't that be up to the firm?" She looked confused, and I doubted it was from the wine.

"Not in this case," Alice interjected. "Normally security requests are decided by Bella, Ang and Mike. This one is all Bella's – they asked for her specifically."

There was a minute of silence before Alice said, "I know you have some kind of history with him Bella, and I know you said it's none of my business. But if you're going to turn this job down, I think Angela and Mike at least deserve to know why."

I took a deep breath and met her gaze across the table. "Edward Cullen and I went to school together from freshman year right through to graduation. His family was wealthy. Mine wasn't. Therefore I was fair game for him and all his snotty, good-looking friends."

"That's a cop out – high school was six years ago!" Alice said with a glare.

I stood up and cut her off as she went to speak. "If I'm going to give you the whole sordid story I need something stronger than beer. You guys want?"

They both agreed and I headed back inside, returning with three spirit glasses and a bottle of bourbon. Pouring three fingers into each glass I passed Alice and Rose a glass and then threw mine back in one go. I refilled my glass then settled back into my chair.

"Ok. So we went to school together. He was the golden boy of Forks. His dad was the town doctor, his mother was an architect. They're both really nice people, by the way – no idea how their son turned out to be the biggest fuckhead I've ever met. Anyway, as we all know, Edward is an only child, blah blah blah. When we were juniors he started modelling and all the girls started hanging off him. Even some of the female staff started giving him special treatment. I'll be the first to admit he was hot, but the arrogance that came with it turned me right off. He got his first bit part in a movie when we were seniors, and as soon as we graduated he moved out here." I paused and took a sip of my drink.

"Don't get mad, but that's not so bad," Alice commented.

I refilled my glass again and continued. "He might have been a tool but he was also pretty smart. The teachers couldn't split us and for the first and last time, Forks High had two valedictorians. We barely spoke two words to each other in four years and all of a sudden, we had to deliver the speech together. He came up to me in the hall and said, 'Write me some lines Swan, get them to me a week before and I won't embarrass you up there.' Cocky prick sauntered away without a backwards glance. So I wrote his lines, and mine, worked really hard. I gave him the speech exactly a week before graduation and nearly died when he said thank you. The day arrived and I went up to speak to him, just to make sure he was ready. Bastard wouldn't even look at me. So we get up there to deliver our speech, and I had given him the opening paragraph. Prick stood up there and read something completely different to what I had written, saying that we had agreed that he would speak on behalf of both of us. I stood there, smiling politely through the whole thing, even though he was going on with some crap about high school being like a movie and some other shit, then called him every name under the sun while he was posing for photos with his folks. Not my finest hour."

"What a jerk," Rose interjected as I paused to sip my drink again.

"He came over with that cocky smile plastered on his face and told me to watch my back, bad things happen to loud-mouthed bitches. So of course I gave him another mouthful. He came out here to LA and I joined the police force, just like my dad. I had no real desire to go to college – figured Forks was where I grew up and I wanted to make a difference. When dad was shot four years later I gave up on the idea of protecting everyone and decided the police force wasn't for me after all. I sold the house, and my car, and moved out here. I bought this place and did the security training, then advertised for qualified security officers. Noone was more surprised than I was when Ang and Mike applied – we all went to school together as well, even though Mike was a year younger."

"And now someone in Cullen's management have asked for you to guard him, and you don't know if you can do it without getting yourself sued…or killing him yourself," Alice concluded.

"Pretty much. Who's up for a swim?" I asked, trying to change the topic.

"You've had too much to drink to be getting in that pool," Rose advised. "Let's go inside and watch bad movies instead."

We spent the rest of the evening on my couch, watching Monty Python movies and eating ice cream. Well, Rose and Alice ate ice cream – I kept going with the bourbon. They ended up leaving around two and I dragged myself off to bed.

I woke as usual at seven the next morning and immediately regretted the half a bottle of bourbon I'd drowned my sorrows in the night before. I staggered from my bed to the kitchen where I pulled a bottle of water from the fridge and downed it in one go. I shuffled back to my bedroom and changed into sweatpants and an old t-shirt. My head started to pound as I laced up my runners but I forced myself to grab my iPod and house key and head outside.

I stretched in my small front yard for a few minutes before I loaded up my 'run' playlist and headed off on my usual thirty minute route. My head was feeling clearer as I ran back up my driveway and let myself inside. I took a quick shower then made myself a fruit salad with vanilla yoghurt for breakfast.

I spent the rest of the day doing laundry and generally cleaning the house, stopping for a chicken, cheese and avocado sandwich for lunch, and heading out for groceries in the afternoon. I made myself red pepper and pumpkin soup for dinner and headed to bed early with the new Peter Rathbone thriller.

Sunday I attacked my garden and started writing myself notes for my meeting with Angela and Mike the next day. Alice called at eight to remind me that I had a meeting with a potential new client the next day at 9am so I'd better not be late. I promised her I would be there on time and hung up.

Monday morning was pretty normal for me. I got up at seven, ran for half an hour, put the coffee on when I got home, showered and dressed, drank my coffee and ate some cereal, then headed to work. I arrived at the office at 8:30, said good morning to Kristen then headed for my office.

I opened the outer door and said good morning to Alice as I hung my leather jacket on the coat rack. She had a fresh bunch of flowers on the lamp table in the waiting area and the aroma was quite nice.

"Any messages from the weekend?" I asked as I grabbed an apple from her fruit basket.

"Nope – and I haven't been to check the mail yet. You have a meeting with Tanya Archer's people at nine, don't know if she'll grace us with her presence or not, then the board meeting at ten thirty, then the meeting with Mike and Angela at eleven thirty," she replied, checking my schedule.

"Thanks Alice. Buzz me when Tanya's people arrive," I said, walking into my office and closing the door.

I smiled when I sat behind my desk. Alice had placed my diary in the centre of my desk, open to today, with my appointments written in pencil, just in case they changed. I knew she would update it again at lunch but the afternoon was looking pretty free at this point. Under my diary was the file we had created after being approached to take on Tanya Archer. She was blonde, gorgeous and suddenly too popular for her own good.

Her people had approached us two weeks earlier after a male fan broke into Tanya's dressing room. Thankfully she wasn't there, but they wanted a permanent escort for her for the next month whenever she was going to be filming. My job this morning was to talk with her management, work out a schedule and agree on a fee. I would then present their requirements at the board meeting and someone would be assigned to the case.

Alice buzzed me five minutes before nine o'clock. "Yes?" I asked. We might be friends, but at work it was all professional.

"Ms Swan, Ms Archer's representatives are here to meet with you," Alice's voice came over the intercom.

"Thank you Ms Brandon. Please send them in."

I closed my diary and moved it to the side of my desk, opening the file and standing as Alice opened the door and ushered the man and woman inside. I introduced myself and Alice offered tea, coffee, and finally water. They declined all three.

I spent the next forty minutes with them and came to the agreement that our firm would provide on-set security only, Monday to Saturday for the next four weeks. "In closing, we will not be responsible for Ms Archer's well-being during her travel to and from filming locations or during any press interviews which take place outside our agreed hours of protection," I finished.

They agreed and signed the interim agreement, which more or less seals the deal. "I'll take this to the board today and someone will get back to you before close of business tomorrow," I informed them. "We will need to see you again to sign the final contract, which Ms Archer will also be required to sign."

They left soon after and I gathered my notes for the board meeting. The board consisted of myself, Angela, Mike and Tyler Crowley, our in-house accountant. He kept tabs on what other private security firms were charging and also how much business they were doing. The Archer account was the only item of business and we allocated the protection detail to Jane Caius, one of our more experienced staff.

After the meeting I passed the information along to Kristen, who I knew would make a copy for Jane and then contact Tanya's people to make a time for the final sign-off.

Alice wasn't at her desk when I made it back to my office so I answered my own phone when it rang.

"Swan Security, Isabella speaking."

"Ms Swan, this is Jackson Reed, Edward Cullen's manager. How are you?" The voice was deep and I knew the guy it belonged to didn't mess around.

"Fine thank you Mr Reed, and yourself?" I might have already decided not to take the Cullen job, but this guy was a big name in Hollywood – manners meant everything.

"Well, thank you for asking. I understand your secretary passed along our request to you on Friday?" he asked.

_Shit,_ I thought. "That's correct. I had a rather full schedule Friday afternoon and have been in meetings all morning, my apologies for not getting back to you. I still need to discuss your proposal with my colleagues, as I'm sure Ms Brandon told you on Friday."

"Ms Swan, let me cut to the chase," he said. "We know that you're busy, but we also know that you're possibly the best in the business right now. You don't let rules and regulations get in the way of protecting people – your recent court history proves it. Mr Cullen is big right now, and we want only the best to be responsible for his welfare when he travels next month. We. Want. You."

I sat and let his words wash over me. "Let me get this straight," I said slowly. "You want me to protect the biggest male star in Hollywood at the moment because I have a no-holds-barred reputation?"

"More or less," Reed replied, the smile evident in his voice. "The added bonus is that your firm is small so if details of Mr Cullen's whereabouts get out, there are only a few people there and a few people here that could be the leak."

I couldn't believe that I was starting to consider taking the job. "I appreciate your call Mr Reed, and your evident faith in my abilities, but I do still need to discuss this with my colleagues. I have a meeting scheduled with them this morning, so I will have an answer for you this afternoon. Is that acceptable?"

"That would be fine Ms Swan. Thank you for your time, and I look forward to hearing from you this afternoon."

After we hung up I sat in my chair, slightly dazed, until Alice knocked on my door. "You right to go?" she asked, poking her head in.

"Yeah, I'll be there in a sec," I said, still shaking my head at myself. I gathered up my diary and a pen and printed off the email Alice had forwarded me from Reed Management on Friday.

Angela and Mike were waiting for me in the small conference room between their offices. "Sorry I'm late," I apologised as I closed the door and took the seat opposite them.

"So what's this about?" Mike asked. "Alice just said it was about a potential new client."

I nodded, pulling the email from my diary. "I've been approached by Reed Management. They want to hire me for a month to provide round-the-clock security for Edward Cullen."

"You specifically, or the firm?" Angela asked. Specific requests weren't unheard of, but they were rare.

I grimaced, "Me specifically. It seems my 'reputation' precedes me."

"Are you going to take it?" Mike sounded excited.

"I'm still not sure," I said slowly. "Friday afternoon I was dead against it – Cullen's a massive tool and I don't want the firm to get caught up in all his bad press."

"Drugs and sleeping around?" Angela guessed.

I nodded. "I know it's a great opportunity for the firm, great exposure and all that, but I don't know if he's the sort of person I want us to be seen to be working for."

The three of us were silent for a few minutes. "I have a suggestion," Mike piped up. "You know how Rosalie helped us draft the standard agreement?"

Angela and I nodded.

"Well, how about you go back to Reed and ask for the exact information – how long you'll be protecting him, whatever the other arrangements will be, then ask Rosalie to draft a specialised agreement, specific to this job?" he suggested.

I had to admit, his idea had merit. "We could work something in about if he gets caught with drugs, or with his pants down, that our agreement is immediately terminated but any outstanding fees are still to be paid."

Angela was nodding. "Would you like me to call Rosalie?"

I shook my head. Rose was going to flip when she found out. "I'll have Alice call her after we have all the information."

We left the conference room with a set plan on the table. I took a detour down three flights to the coffee cart on the floor where the building's cafeteria was. I ordered a full cream flat white with a shot of hazelnut for myself, and a skinny caramel latte for Alice.

I walked back into the office a few minutes later and placed it on her desk, earning me the raised eyebrow. "What gives?"

"Five minutes. I need five minutes then I need you to come in and see me – I need you to get some information for me." I left her hanging and walked into my office, closing the door behind me and sinking into my chair.

_I can't believe I'm fucking doing this…I must be out of my fucking mind,_ I told myself. My head was still in my hands five minutes later when Alice knocked on the door.

"Come in," I mumbled, sitting up straight and drinking half my coffee in one mouthful.

Alice placed her cup on the desk then sat primly in one of the visitor's chairs opposite me, eyebrow raised expectantly.

"The Cullen proposal," I finally said.

The eyebrow got higher.

"I'm going to take it, with a few conditions. I need you to go back to Jackson Reed and get all the details – when, where, exactly what I'll be responsible for. Try and get it from him before the end of today. Once we've got it, I need to retain Rosalie to write a non-standard agreement – I want to make sure I protect myself and the firm."

Alice nodded. "Contact Reed, get the information. Call Rosalie, retain her, set up a meeting."

"Thanks Alice. And please don't tell her why we need her – I'll save that for the meeting. If she's available, I'd like to make it first thing tomorrow morning so I don't have time to change my mind." I was already doubting my decision.

"Coffee and pastries?" she suggested.

"Sounds nice – I'd like you to join us to take notes. But for now, I'm going to hit the gym," I said, standing and effectively ending our conversation.

"See you in an hour," Alice called after me as I left the outer office, gym bag in tow.

It wasn't until I was on the Stairmaster twenty minutes later that I considered my decision again.

_What the fuck am I doing?_


	3. Chapter 2

**A/N: **I do not own Twilight – just these crazy versions of Stephenie Meyer's characters that won't leave me alone!

I know, I know. I suck at updating. I've been busy and I honestly haven't liked anything I've written enough to call it a chapter. So I changed my tactics. A lot of you asked for Edward's point of view…so here it is.

Happy reading!

Chapter 2

EPOV

I woke up in the hotel in San Diego and rolled over, straight into a body I didn't recognise. Or did I? _Jacqueline? Julia? Jasmine? Jessica!_ I finally remembered, squinting at the face next to me.

Careful not to move my head too much I sat up and grabbed my boxers off the floor next to the bed. _Emmett's going to kill me_, was my next thought as I headed for the shower. With the hot water running, I stepped in and thought back to the conversation Emmett and I had the night before at dinner.

***

"No more women Edward, you promised!" he said, following my gaze across the room to where a group of young women stood at the bar.

I only nodded and sipped the scotch in front of me. "Come on Em – look at them!"

He just shook his head. "Your reputation is getting worse. I'm struggling to make you look good to the press at the moment."

Emmett had been hired by Reed six months ago when the drug rumours started. None of them were true – I wouldn't touch the stuff after seeing what had happened to some of my co-stars. Emmett and I had gone to school together so it was easy having him around, and his reputation as a media genius made him an easy choice when we needed to bring someone on board to handle all my press requests. Now he travelled pretty much everywhere with me.

"There's a reporter from the LA Times two tables over," he said in a low voice. "You fuck up tonight and it'll be headline news."

I promised I'd keep my pants on for the night and we settled in for dinner, heading to bed early. Emmett left me at my room with a reminder that our flight left at ten the next morning and the cab would be arriving at 8:30.

I was getting ready to go to bed when there was a knock on my door. Presuming it was Emmett I opened it without checking to find a blonde with big boobs in a tight dress on the other side. I was screwed.

***

I stepped out of the shower and dried off, shaving quickly before packing my toiletries back up for the flight home to LA. I walked back to the bed and gently shook my guest.

"Time to wake up – I have a flight to catch," I said when she opened her eyes.

She stretched, the sheet falling to her waist, showing off her perfect breasts. Fake, but perfect nonetheless.

"Surely you've got time for some fun?" she purred, sliding her hands down her body.

I couldn't help glancing at the clock. It was quarter past eight – no chance. I opened my mouth to answer but was stopped by a knock at the door.

"Wakey wakey sunshine – cab'll be here in fifteen," Emmett called.

"Fuck," I muttered under my breath. I turned back to Jessica. "You need to get dressed – I gotta go."

Emmett knocked again. "Edward? You in there?"

"Just gimme a sec," I yelled back.

Once Jessica was dressed I escorted her to the door and opened it, taking a deep breath.

"What the fuck?" Emmett asked with a bemused look on his face.

She stood on her tiptoes and kissed me on the cheek. "Bye Edward," she purred again, walking down the corridor.

"Get in here," I hissed at him, dragging him and his bags inside.

"You want to tell me what that was?" he asked.

"She just turned up here, I swear! How was I supposed to say no?" I shrugged.

Emmett turned and glared at me. "Gee, I don't know. How about you man up and act like an adult instead of a horny sixteen year old kid? For fuck's sake Edward! It's no wonder Reed had to grovel to get you security for next month!"

I zipped up my suitcase and turned around. "What the fuck are you talking about?"

"Next month. You're filming in Vancouver for the month remember? Reed was worried about the fans because of last time, so he was looking into getting you personal security as well as the studio lot?" Emmett was looking at me like I was stupid.

"I remember, yeah. Reed's worried I'll get hit by a bus trying to get away from them," I joked.

"He hired Bella Swan."

I froze. I had heard that Bella Swan was in LA and running a security firm but I never thought our paths would cross.

Emmett snapped his fingers in front of my eyes, drawing me back to the here and now. "You ok?"

I nodded and we headed for the airport. Once the plane took off I closed my eyes and pretended to sleep while I processed Emmett's latest bombshell.

Emmett knew better than anyone that I'd never forgiven myself for the way I treated Bella at our graduation. Back then I was a cocky little prick who had the world at his feet. As I grew older I started thinking back over things and I was appalled at how I had treated some people when I was younger. Bella was a prime example. We never really had much to do with each other but she was a nice girl. She was obviously smart as well which was probably why she never came anywhere near me. When I heard her father died a few years ago I wanted to call or send flowers, almost like a late apology, but something stopped me. And now I was going to be spending a month with her, with my life practically in her hands.

I eventually fell into a real sleep and woke as we were touching down in LA. I signed autographs and posed with fans for a few minutes while we waited for our luggage and then headed for Emmett's BMW in the long-stay car park.

After he dropped me home I quickly unpacked, getting my dry cleaning ready to drop off on Monday and throwing a load of clothes in the washing machine. I ordered in from my favourite Thai restaurant and spent the night reading on the couch.

I woke the next morning when my alarm went off at 6:30 and dragged myself out of bed and into a pair of shorts and a t-shirt. The doorbell rang at 6:45 and I let my personal trainer in.

"Morning Jasper," I greeted him.

"Edward," he said with nod. "Emmett tells me you've been…altering your exercise regime again," he continued, not able to hide the smile this time.

I shook my head and grinned. "You two gossip like two little old ladies."

I had hired Jasper Hale as my personal trainer eighteen months ago when I won a role in a military film that ended up being canned before filming even started. We'd formed a close friendship and I kept him on the books. He revamped my diet and set me an exercise plan for each role I won and set plans for when I travelled. As much as we both tried, I couldn't eliminate the scotch from my life.

"What's in store today?" I asked, dreading the answer already.

A smirk stole across his face before he pulled himself back into professional mode. "Well, I understand you got a decent amount of cardio while you were in San Diego over the weekend, so I was thinking weights today."

I groaned. Weights with Jasper was never fun. I led the way to my home gym which was set up in one of the three spare bedrooms. The next hour was one of the most gruelling sessions Jasper had put me through, but I knew it would be worth it. My next role was going to involve a lot of 'shirtless shooting' as Emmett called it so I wanted to be sure my body was ready for it.

Jasper stayed for breakfast and left a little before nine. My phone was ringing when I dragged myself out of the shower and I let it go through to voicemail. Once I was dressed I grabbed my phone off my bed and dialled through to receive the message. It was Reed so I figured I'd better call him back.

"Jackson Reed's office, Ashley speaking, how may I help?" came the nasally voice of his receptionist.

"Ashley, this is Edward Cullen. Jackson left me a message to call him," I told her, not bothering to be polite. Vapid skank was always fluttering her eyelids at me.

"Hi Edward, I'll just put you through," she said, her voice disappearing as the dinky hold music took over.

"Edward, thanks for calling me back! How was San Diego?" Jackson's voice came down the line.

"Same old, same old," I joked, hoping like hell he didn't know about the blonde.

"Good good. Look, I've hired Isabella Swan from Swan Security for the Vancouver job, we need to meet with her this week at some point to sign the contracts – she needs your signature as well as mine. Can you come in here Wednesday morning at nine so we can go over there for a ten meeting?" He sounded stressed, which was unusual.

I quickly grabbed the small diary off my dresser and flipped open to Wednesday. I had a training session with Jasper scheduled for 7am and dinner with my parents. "Lock it in," I said to Jackson, blocking out the day between 8:30 and 2pm.

We hung up and I grabbed the dry cleaning and my grocery list. I dropped my clothes off at my local cleaners and headed to the supermarket which was blissfully quiet. There were times where I embraced my celebrity status and others where I really wished I was still a nobody.

Thankfully the store was quiet and I got in and out without too much fuss. I unpacked my groceries and grabbed a bottle of water before sitting on the couch with my laptop.

I Googled Swan Security and was surprised to see Angela Weber and Michael Newton listed as Managing Directors, while Bella was listed as 'Head of Security Services'. I spent the next couple of hours digging through old newspaper articles and public records. I learned that the three of them had started the firm together with Bella in charge, and that the others weren't actually security staff, they just processed the requests and met with potential clients. There were no photos of any of the staff so once I logged off I headed to my study and pulled my senior yearbook off the shelf.

Smiling as I flipped to the centre for the senior pictures, I laughed hard at myself before I turned a couple of pages to find her. My breath caught in my throat as I really looked at Bella Swan for the first time. Even as a seventeen year old she had been beautiful, I realised. Thick dark hair, a heart shaped face and a perfect white smile. _Fuck,_ I thought to myself, _I'm in trouble._

My phone interrupted my reminiscing and I grabbed it up to hear Emmett's voice on the other end.

"What's planned for tonight?" he asked.

"Not a lot – why?" I was always dubious when Emmett called close to dinner time.

"I just spoke to Jasper and we decided we're taking over your place for food. Fire up the grill – we'll be there in twenty minutes. I've got steak and he's got beer." The line went dead.

Chuckling, I place the yearbook back on the shelf and headed outside to light the grill. True to his word, Emmett arrived twenty minutes later with Jasper hot on his tail. Emmett took charge of cooking the steaks while I made a salad to go with them. Jasper supervised, polishing off his first beer in under five minutes.

"Aren't you the health guru or some shit?" Emmett called from outside.

Jas gave him the finger. "Yep. But only when I'm getting paid. The rest of the time I'm a beer-swilling, steak eating he-man like you."

We discussed my trip to Vancouver over dinner. "I'm not coming with you, but I'm setting you an exercise and meal plan before you go," Jasper said around a mouthful of steak.

"Hopefully he'll need you to include cardio," Emmett said with a smirk. "Between his shooting schedule and full-time security it'll be a challenge to find time for the women!"

"So what happened in San Diego?" Jasper asked, taking his lead from Emmett. "Media boy here was kinda sketchy on the details."

"That's because I didn't choose to share them," I replied, shoving another forkful of steak in my mouth to avoid the question.

"Aw come on! You remember The Pact, right?" Jasper reminded me.

I groaned. 'The Pact' had been made one very drunken evening at this very table. The three of us swore that while we were all single, if we got laid we had to share details.

"C'mon Eddie, don't let a man down!" Emmett cajoled, getting up for three fresh beers.

I drained the one in front of me and popped the top on the next one, drawing out the moment. "Ok. So Emmett left me at my room. I was just finishing packing when there was a knock at the door, and I figured it was him. It wasn't. I opened the door and here's this girl, blonde, massive tits, tight dress and a bottle of scotch. How do they all know I like scotch?"

"Fangirls," the guys answered in unison.

"My brain was saying don't do it, but my dick was begging me to let her in. It won. So she came in and I poured us both a drink and by the time I turned around she'd dropped the dress and was lying on the bed, one hand playing with her boobs and the other…" I trailed off.

"You can't stop there!" Emmett groaned.

"Well where the fuck do you think it was?" I asked with a cocky grin.

"You are one lucky son of a bitch," he moaned, dropping his head into his palm.

Jasper motioned for me to continue, so I did. "So I'm standing there with two glasses of scotch, watching her play with herself. I threw both of them back and poured two more, then gave up on the idea of drinking and joined her in the bed."

I stopped and took a couple of sips of my beer. Jasper and Emmett were hanging on my every word, and I felt kind of bad that I was giving them wank fodder based on some random girl. Remembering The Pact, I kept going.

"So we started fooling around and before I knew it I was naked and my dick was in her mouth. Girl had obviously been watching too many pornos. I ended up asking her to stop, telling her I was going to blow in her mouth and would rather do it inside her. So she stopped and got up and got the scotch, downing both glasses and passing me the bottle. I drank a heap in one go and didn't even realise she'd rolled a condom on my dick. So we fucked, it wasn't anything marvellous, and then we both passed out."

Emmett and Jasper were both sitting there with I-don't-believe-you looks on their faces. Emmett was the first to break the silence.

"You fucked and it wasn't anything 'marvellous'? What a crock of shit! Details brother!"

Jasper nodded in agreement. "Even if it was bad, it's still more that I've been getting!"

Sighing, I took another fortifying gulp of beer and gave them the details. "Either she was already half tanked when she got there or she couldn't hold her booze, she was a total starfish. Just lay there while I drilled her, moaned a bit then rolled over as soon as I was done."

"What a waste," Emmett mumbled. "Here I was, thinking you were just keeping the details to yourself, but I know when you're lying and you look so disappointed – it must have been bad!"

The conversation changed to football and then movies, and by the time the guys left I was ready for sleep. I cancelled my alarm for the next morning and fell into bed.

The sun was streaming in through the blinds when I woke the next morning. I rolled over and checked the time – 9:45am. _Shit_, I thought, _no more drinking with Emmett and Jasper on weeknights._

I wandered into the kitchen and grabbed a banana from the fruit bowl before standing in my pantry, debating what to have for breakfast. I gave the healthy option up as a bad joke and grabbed the bacon and a couple of eggs out of the fridge.

I lazed around on the couch for the better part of the morning, emerging from the shower round lunch time. Still full from breakfast, I passed on lunch and sat out on the back deck with a book and an apple.

My mother called at three to confirm our dinner plans for the next evening – it was rare for my parents to be in LA long enough and with enough spare time to see me, and even more rare for me to actually be there when they did.

After we hung up I made up the guest room for them, making sure to put hospital corners in the sheets and fold the towels so the folds were on the outside of the rack.

I made myself spaghetti bolognaise for dinner and ate outside, enjoying the warm weather. I washed my dishes by hand and left them to drain in the rack while I sorted out some clothes for the next day. I settled on a pair of dark jeans with boots and a charcoal grey button down shirt that I always wore with the sleeves rolled up.

I set my alarm to make sure I was up before Jasper arrived and slid into bed, pulling the covers up and settling into the pillow. My last conscious thought was of Bella Swan.

_What the fuck am I getting myself into?_


	4. Chapter 3

**A/N: **I do not own Twilight – just these crazy versions of Stephenie Meyer's characters that won't leave me alone!

It seems like forever since I've written anything, but now that I'm on holiday I'm going to get back into the swing of things! I'm not making any promises about updates – let's just see how we go!

Happy reading!

Chapter 3

BPOV

I woke on Wednesday morning to Billy Joel's 'Scenes from an Italian Restaurant' coming from the iPod dock next to my bed. I lay there and let the music wash over me while I thought ahead to my meeting with Cullen's people. I wasn't sure if Jackson Reed himself would be coming or if Mr Cullen would grace us with his presence, but I wanted to be ready for anything.

After my run and shower I had a balanced breakfast of chocolate cereal and coffee and drove to the office, arriving a little after eight. Alice wasn't in so I left the door to my internal office open. I'd frightened her half to death a few weeks earlier when I got in before her and walked out, so I'd promised that if I beat her in from now on I'd leave my door open.

I heard the door to the outer office open right on 8:30 and Alice called out a good morning, which I returned. She came in without knocking five minutes later, handing me my diary and the file on Edward Cullen, complete with Rosalie's non-standard agreement and a few other bits and pieces I'd asked for.

"Thanks Alice," I said with a grateful smile.

I was expecting her to leave and close the door but she perched in one of the client chairs across from me. "Are you sure about this?" she asked.

I grimaced and rubbed my hand across my face. "Honestly? Still no. But the exposure is going to be amazing for the firm, and Rose has me covered with the agreement. And I know if it gets bad that I can call in and have myself replaced."

"You'll be fine. I'll hold your calls until after the meeting this morning, give you time to go over the file one last time. Should I have coffee ready for the meeting?"

I smiled a genuine smile. "Thanks Alice – I know you've got it under control."

"Always do!" she said with a grin as she got up and walked out of the office, closing the door behind her.

I quickly checked my diary for the day and was relieved that the Cullen meeting was the only thing scheduled. I closed it and stuck it in my top drawer, then pulled the file towards me.

I skimmed over the personal details – everyone knew everything about this guy, and then some. It had come as no surprise to me that Emmett McCarty had been hired as Cullen's media person. Emmett and I had been kind-of friends during school – we were both on the paper junior and senior years. He and Cullen had been thick as thieves and obviously still were.

I took a bit more time going over the section headed, 'Previous Security History' and was astounded that Reed had relied solely on the security provided by the various film companies and had never even looked into private security.

Next came the proposed schedule. We'd fly out to Vancouver on November 28, a week from today, and then fly back to LA on December 23. My detail started with meeting Cullen at the airport and ended when we passed through security on our return. The rest of the time I was expected to be with him every waking moment, and then some. The final line hit me like a ton of bricks. _"A two-bedroom suite will be paid for by Mountain Crest entertainment for the duration of filming to enable Ms Swan to provide around-the-clock protection for Mr Cullen."_

_You have to be fucking kidding me,_ I thought to myself. _I have to share a room with this fucker?_

My thoughts were interrupted by the intercom. "Ms Swan? Mr Reed, Mr McCarty and Mr Cullen are here."

"Fuck," I cursed under my breath. Breathing deeply, I depressed the speaker button. "Thank you Ms Brandon. Please show them in."

I closed the file as I stood, plastering what I hoped was a convincing smile on my face.

Reed entered first. I'd seen photos but they didn't do him justice. He was in his late thirties, average height and athletically built, with dark hair and grey eyes. "Ms Swan, thank you for meeting with us," he said extending his hand.

I shook it firmly. "My pleasure," I replied, turning back to the door as Emmett McCarty walked in with Edward Cullen close behind.

My breath caught in my throat when I saw him in the flesh for the first time in six years. _You're fucked,_ the little voice in the back of my head gloated.

"Bella Swan," Emmett said with a smile, also extending his hand.

"It's Isabella, Mr McCarty," I said, trying to keep it professional.

I turned to the God who was still standing next to the door. "Mr Cullen," I said, moving over to shake his hand. "Please come in and take a seat."

Reed was already seated and was watching with a confused look on his face. Alice had followed the three men in and quickly offered the usual tea, coffee and water. After taking orders she walked briskly out of the room and closed the door behind her.

I took my seat behind my desk and pulled the file towards me.

"Does someone want to explain to me what that was all about?" Reed asked.

"Sorry?" I knew exactly what he was referring to.

"You know each other." It wasn't a question.

Emmett answered for the three of us. "Jackson, the three of us went to school together. Ms Swan and I worked on the paper together and Edward treated her like shit."

I snorted at his honesty and couldn't help myself from grinning at him across my desk, quickly pulling myself together.

"Interesting," Reed mused. "And no-one thought to mention this to me?"

"Mr Reed, I didn't see it as essential information," I finally got into the conversation. "Mr Cullen is a client and will be shown the same courtesy and professionalism as all of my other clients."

"I don't deserve it," Edward blurted.

"Pardon?" I asked, taking in Reed's stunned expression and Emmett's poorly contained smirk.

"I don't deserve your courtesy or your professionalism. Emmett is right – I treated you like shit when we were at school and I wouldn't blame you for using that against me now," he finished.

"Mr Cullen, high school was six years ago. I've done a lot of growing up in that time and obviously you've found a conscience in that time, so I don't see any issues. Unless you do, I suggest we move on and discuss the terms of this contract?" I suggested.

He nodded silently so I turned to Reed again. "Mr Reed, I've gone through your amendments to the contract our attorney has drawn up and I agree to all but one of the terms. I fail to understand why Mr Cullen and I would need to share a suite."

Emmett chuckled quietly and then turned an angelic expression towards Reed.

"We're sharing a suite? What the fuck?" Edward looked pissed.

I turned to him, glad he was on my side with this one. "Mr Cullen, please refrain from using profanities in this office. I take it Mr Reed didn't fill you in on that part?"

Edward shook his head and shot a death stare at Reed.

"Let me explain. Ms Swan, you're being hired to provide around-the-clock protection for Mr Cullen. We simply felt this was better served if you were in a suite, rather than two separate rooms," Reed explained.

"What Jackson is saying is, he doesn't trust me," Edward said, suddenly every bit the petulant child.

"Your recent trip to San Diego is reason enough not to trust you," Reed said calmly.

Edward shot a look at Emmett who shrugged.

"Emmett didn't tell me," Reed went on. "The girl was a plant – thankfully Emmett caught the tabloid before they went to print."

Now it was my turn. "Ok, this is where I need to clarify something. There's been a lot of bad press relating to Mr Cullen of late, the majority of it focussing on his activities with various women. It's clearly stated in my contract that if there's anything of this sort going on that I'm out of there. What I want to know is how much of this is true." I raised an eyebrow at the three men sitting across from me.

Edward looked at the wall, Emmett sat there with a small smile playing on his lips and Reed ran his hand through his hair. It was he who answered me. "Mr Cullen has a certain…weakness…for the ladies. This issue has been addressed time and time again, and this contract holds a major risk for him. If he is caught with his pants down again, so to speak, effectively nullifying your contract, he also loses his contract with me. So it's in his best interests to behave. We felt, as did Mountain Peak, that having the two of you sharing a suite might curb his night time activities."

I actually laughed aloud at that. "Night time activities? I like you Mr Reed – you tell it the way it is. Now, one last question before I sign off on this. Where does Mr McCarty fit in with my job?"

"Allow me," Emmett said. "It's been my job for the last three years to make sure only the right stuff gets printed about our friend here. Needless to say, there have been times where he's screwed up past the point of me being able to convince the papers and magazines to not print something. I'm there to assist in his media interviews and to handle his schedule, nothing more."

I nodded as I reached for a pen. _Why do I feel like I'm signing away my life?_ I wondered as I signed on the dotted line. I turned the paper around and handed the pen to Edward, jumping when our hands touched for the briefest of seconds. He signed on the line and handed the pen back to me.

A brief silence followed, mercifully broken when Alice knocked on the door with our drinks. "Thank you," I said mechanically. "Ms Brandon, could you please make four copies of this for me? I'd like a copy to be ready for Mr Reed and Mr Cullen when they leave." I handed her the contract.

"Right away," she answered, walking out and closing the door behind her.

"Four copies?" Emmett asked.

"We keep the original here, and I take a copy with me. Then there's one for Mr Reed, one for Mr Cullen, and one will be sent to Mountain Crest so they know why I'm following him around like a lost puppy," I explained, inclining my head towards Edward.

"You'd just be another fan girl," Emmett quipped with his familiar dimpled grin.

We all laughed at that and I felt the tension easing. "Mr McCarty…"

"Quit it with the 'Mister' stuff," Emmett interrupted. "It's Emmett. It's always been Emmett. Mr McCarty is my grandfather."

I nodded with a small smile. "Business habit. Emmett it is."

"While we're at it…" Edward began, but it was my turn to cut him off.

"No chance. You're my client, so it stays as Mr Cullen."

He looked up and met my eyes for the first time since he'd entered my office. _Holy shit, _I thought,_ I forgot how green his eyes were._

Reed's voice brought me back to earth. "Ms Swan, if that's all you need us for, we'll get out of your hair. The three of us will see you at the airport on the 28th."

I checked the list of things I needed to complete inside the cover of the folder and was relieved to see that everything was covered. "That's it," I replied, standing and extending my hand. I shook hands with the three men and moved over to open the door, holding it while they walked through.

Alice stood and handed over the copies of the contract and showed them out. I was sitting in my chair with the door open when she returned and knocked softly on my door.

"You ok?" she asked.

I nodded. "I think so. Can you call Rose and see if she's free for lunch?"

***

Rose had a jam-packed day at the court house but agreed to meet us at Sam's, the small coffee shop around the corner at 12:30.

We were already in a corner booth when she entered and flopped down on my left.

"Why are we in a booth again?" she complained.

"Bad habit," I answered. "I just can't sit with my back to a room any more."

She seemed happy with my answer and grabbed the menu, quickly going over the list.

"Are you ladies ready to order?"

We looked up to see a tall, dark-haired man standing by our table, wearing the green shirt all the table staff at Sam's wore.

"Hi Sam!" Alice blurted.

He laughed, a warm and inviting sound. "Alice," he said, lifting her hand and dropping a kiss across her knuckles. Rose and I pretended to swoon. "How are my favourite girls?"

"Exhausted," Rose sighed.

"Poor Rosie," Sam said with a smile. "What are we having today?"

Alice and I ordered the chilli chicken salads and Rose went for a Greek salad. All three of us ordered coffee.

"You girls are going to short out if coffee is ever made illegal," Sam teased as he walked away.

"So why the urgent lunch?" Rose asked while we waited for our meals.

"I think I know," Alice said, glancing at me. "Something happened this morning when Edward Cullen came in."

"Define 'something' for me," Rose said.

"Go lawyer Rose," I said quietly under my breath.

"I think Bella's probably the best one to be telling us things," Alice said quietly.

Two sets of blue eyes were fixed firmly on my face as I shredded a paper napkin.

"He's…changed," I explained lamely.

"Not gonna fly missy," Rose snorted.

I shrugged. "I can't explain it. He's just different. Grown up, mature…I can't really put it into words. When I looked in his eyes, he wasn't the arrogant little snot I thought he'd be. They were…warm."

I knew without looking that Alice and Rose were exchanging 'the look' across the table.

"Bella…" Alice started, but stopped when our food was brought out. I quickly stuffed some chicken and salad in my mouth.

She started again. "Bella, are you going to tell us that you can actually see him as a person now?"

The tell-tale blush that has been my worst enemy my whole life crept over my face.

"Not as a person…as a man?" Rose asked quietly.

I nodded. Alice squealed quietly next to me.

"I wasn't prepared for it," I said, feeling the ramble I needed to get off my chest rising to the surface. "He walked in and I felt like my jaw hit the floor. Then he spoke and my stomach did that turn-over thing. Then he admitted that he treated me like shit in school and my insides did that stupid schoolgirl flip-flop thing. Then when I handed him the pen we touched for like half a second and my fingers tingled…man I'm pathetic!" I finished, dropping my forehead on the table.

'You're not pathetic," Rose said sympathetically from across the table. "You just need to be careful to keep it professional, at least until Christmas."

I looked up to see my two best friends smiling at me. "What the fuck is there to smile about?"

"Bella's got her groove back!" Alice laughed. I scowled.

"You have to admit it's been a long dry spell," Rose said with a giggle, which was quickly aborted when her pager went off. "Fuck," she muttered. "I gotta go." She turned towards the counter. "Hey Sam, can I get this to go?"

Sam came over with three take-out containers and three Styrofoam cups of coffee. "These are on the house," he said as he set them in front of us before scraping our salads into the containers.

Alice handed him some money. "Keep the change," she said as we all stood.

"See you ladies next week!" he called after us as we headed for the door.

I stopped. "Not me Sam, I'm out of town for a month on a job. If I don't see you, have a great Christmas, ok?"

He came and gave me a hug. "Travel safe Bells," he said as he let me go.

***

It wasn't until I was lying on my couch at home later in the evening that it hit me.

_Fuck! I'm going to be spending a month with Edward frickin' Cullen. In a suite. I'll probably see him in his pyjamas…if he even wears them. What if I walk in on him in the shower?_

That last one put even more bad thoughts in my head so I dragged myself off to bed before they could go any further. It didn't stop the panic though.

_What if_ he_ walks in on _me_?_


	5. Chapter 4

**A/N: **I do not own Twilight – just these crazy versions of Stephenie Meyer's characters that won't leave me alone!

So I suck. I haven't updated in months. So if you're reading this, thank you from the heart of my bottom. I still can't promise regular updates, but my life is settling down now and I'm trying very very hard to make Tuesday night my writing night. (Even though right now it's Saturday!) Hopefully I'll update every two weeks – with updates to "Jasper's Story" in the off weeks.

I'm also starting a collab with a friend who just happens to be a fantastic writer – more on that when it happens though.

Thanks to those who have stuck with me so far…hopefully we can keep going on Bella's journey!

Happy reading!

Chapter 4

EPOV

November 28 came around faster than I was ready for. Reed and Emmett picked me up early in the morning for the trip to the airport. We had priority parking and secure check-in organised, but I knew from past experience that wouldn't make too much of a difference.

Strangely, knowing that Bella was going to be there calmed me down. I had never had my own personal security before, except when I was on set or doing promo work. Emmett had been a pseudo bodyguard at times but it wasn't in his job description so we had to be careful that he didn't overstep it and find himself up on charges.

We arrived at the airport and made it through the doors will very little fuss – always a bad sign. Reed took my bags and loaded them onto a trolley with Emmett's, taking them over to the VIP check-in for us. Not three seconds after he turned his back, I heard the first screams.

"Ahhh!!! It's Edward Cullen!" a chorus of female teenage voices trilled.

"Fuck," I muttered.

Emmett grinned.

"What?" I snapped.

"This is gonna be great," he explained, looking over my shoulder.

I turned to see Bella standing two feet behind me, hands on hips, presumably glaring the girls down.

"Mr Cullen is here for a flight, which, I might add, we're going to be late for," she explained politely. "I'm sure he's sorry that he doesn't have time for autographs today."

With that, she turned and marched over to me, grabbing me by the elbow and spinning me around, dragging me into the VIP lounge.

"What in the blue hell was that?" I asked her once we were inside, shrugging out of her surprisingly strong grip. "And thanks, by the way."

"_That_," she replied, hands back on her hips, "was me doing my job. In case you've forgotten, my security detail started when you arrived at the airport. I've been here for an hour, checking emergency exits and thinking of ways to get you past the screaming hordes of fan girls."

I looked at my shoes, feeling like a tool. "Thanks," I mumbled.

"It's my job," she replied.

There was a tense moment between us, mercifully broken by Reed and Emmett walking into the lounge.

"Hey Bella!" Emmett greeted her with a smile, moving over to shake her hand.

"Ms Swan." Reed was more formal. "I see everything has been taken care of."

"All ready to go," she replied. "I've arranged for priority boarding for Mr Cullen, Emmett, and myself. My understanding is that aside from three executives from Wall Street, we're the only ones travelling first class today, and the airline has been informed that there are to be no upgrades on this flight. When we arrive in Vancouver, we will be the final three to disembark. Mr Cullen will be escorted straight to a waiting limo, supplied by Mountain Crest, while Emmett and I retrieve our bags."

"I don't mean to be rude, but why is it 'Emmett' and 'Mr Cullen'? I know you said I'm the client," I said, cutting her off, "but if we're going to be spending almost every minute of the next four weeks together, I'd appreciate a slightly more friendly level of interaction."

Bella opened her mouth to reply and then closed it again. After a moment of thought, she replied, "All right Mr Cullen. In public or the company of your fellow co-stars, you will be Mr Cullen and Mr McCarty. When we are out of the view of the public eye, you will be Edward and Emmett. Acceptable?"

I smiled at her raised eyebrow – I remembered it from high school. "Acceptable."

Shortly after our little chat we were approached by a male steward from the airline, advising us we could board. I said goodbye to Reed and he told me he would be up in a week or two to see how things were going.

The three of us boarded and took our assigned seats. Emmett was next to the window with Bella in the aisle, and I had the seat across the aisle.

"I apologise that you will have to wait for half an hour until take-off," the steward said. "But Ms Swan was very specific in her request that you be boarded first. Can I offer you a drink while you wait?"

Bella looked over at me, almost like she was daring me to order something alcoholic. "A Coke would be fine, thank you," I answered. "Ms Swan? Would you like anything?"

"Just a glass of water, thank you," she said, an almost stunned look on her face.

"A Coke for me too, please," Emmett cut in.

Our drinks came and Bella took a few minutes to go over the schedule for the next couple of days. There was no work tomorrow, just a day to settle in. Then it all really started, with rehearsals starting on the thirtieth and press starting on the second.

The other three first class passengers joined us ten minutes before take-off. They were all middle aged men in business suits – the kind of people I liked travelling with because for the most part, they had no idea who I was.

The flight staff went through all the emergency stuff and then we were asked to fasten our seatbelts for take-off.

Three quarters of an hour after we were seated, we were in the air. I opened the LA Times and read for a while, stealing the occasional glance across the aisle.

Bella and Emmett were playing some type of card game, both of them smiling and laughing – catching up. I caught myself spending more and more time watching her.

She wasn't dressed in anything spectacular – bright blue Converse, black cargo pants, a grey hoodie, and her hair in a ponytail. She looked comfortable, not like any previous security I'd ever had. They always looked uptight.

The curtain behind us swished open and Bella's demeanour changed like an automatic reflex. She sat up straighter, her face alert, her hand drifting towards her right hip where I guessed her gun would normally be.

The flight steward walked between the three of us and turned around, offering tea or coffee. All three of us ordered coffee, as did the three executives sitting a few rows in front of us.

Lunch was served an hour later and once the plates were cleared away, Bella buried her nose in a book. I decided to grab a nap and turned my iPod on. _Nothing like some jazz to calm the nerves,_ I thought as I drifted off.

The next thing I knew, Emmett was shaking my shoulder. "Time to wake up, sleeping beauty," he teased. "We'll be landing in ten minutes."

I looked across at Bella and wasn't surprised that her bag was packed and stored under the seat in front of her. Her eyes were clear and her body language said she was ready for whatever came next.

The plane touched down fifteen minutes ahead of schedule and as soon as the seatbelt sign went off, Bella pulled out her iPhone and turned it on. She dialled a number and spoke quietly and rapidly to whoever was on the other end.

When she hung up, I knew it was bad.

"Problem?" I asked.

She nodded. "The car is here, but they've already been surrounded by fan girls. Airport security can't get you there safely."

I sighed. "Isabella, I've dealt with fan girls for the last six years. If the driver can have the door open, I can run and dive – it's a move I've perfected."

Emmett chuckled. "Was that Mexico?"

I returned his laugh. "Nope – Chicago."

"I don't like it, but it could be our only hope," Bella said. She pulled her phone out of her pocket again.

"It's Swan…Mr Cullen is going to be travelling alone…As soon as he's in the car, you need to head to the hotel…Mr McCarty and I will follow in a cab…Wait for us in the underground car park…That's all…Thank you."

"Right." She looked at me. "You get off the plane, you get in the car, you go. Emmett and I will get the bags and catch a cab." She turned to Emmett. "People will be expecting you to be travelling with Edward. Anyone asks, I'm your girlfriend and we've flown in a day ahead to spend some time together."

We both nodded.

"Let's go," she said, launching herself out of her seat.

We cleared through the airport and I made a break for the car with the two guys from airport security, watching Bella and Emmett move towards the baggage claim out of the corner of my eye. I walked through the automatic door and was hit with a tidal wave of screaming. I spotted the guy with the Mountain Crest sign and launched myself towards him at a run, leaping through the open door into the back seat and locking the door as soon as it closed behind me.

The driver climbed into the front and turned to look at me over his shoulder. "Mr Cullen, my name is Eric and I'll be your driver while you're in Vancouver. Ms Swan has directed me to take you directly to your hotel. If there's anything you need please don't hesitate to ask." He turned around and raised the privacy barrier before pulling smoothly away from the crowd.

We arrived at the hotel twenty five minutes later and Eric pulled the car into the underground car park. Once the engine was shut off the privacy barrier lowered. "Everything ok back there?"

I smiled. "Everything is fine. Do we know how far away the others are?"

"I can call if you like?" he offered.

I shook my head. "It's fine. They won't be far."

We waited for about ten minutes and a cab pulled in beside us. Bella and Emmett climbed out and pulled our bags from the trunk.

Emmett climbed into the limo beside me. "Bella is going to go and check us in, then come down and get us," he said. After a pause he added, "She's pretty cool."

I grunted noncommittally and turned to look out the window.

Bella came out of the elevator a few minutes later and opened my door. "Let's go." She turned and grabbed her bags and then stood and waiting for us.

"Thanks Eric," I called to the driver. "See you round."

Emmett and I exited the car and picked up our stuff, then the three of us headed to the elevator together.

We stopped on the fifteenth floor and Bella stood in the doorway, looking in both directions before she would let me out. "We're down here," she said, turning left out of the door. "Emmett, you're in 1504, on the left here, and Edward and I are across the hall in 1541." She handed Emmett his swipe card.

"I was thinking the three of us could get some room service for dinner?" Emmett suggested. "Keep Edward out of the public eye?"

Bella nodded. "Good idea." She checked her watch. "It's four pm local time. How about you come across at six and we'll order? That way we all have time to settle in."

Emmett nodded and opened the door to his room. "See you then." The door closed behind him.

Bella turned and inserted the card into the door of the suite, pushing it open and holding it open for me.

"You should go and choose a room," she said.

"Ladies first," I replied.

She looked up at me in shock. "You're actually being sincere." It wasn't a question, it was a statement. She seemed shocked.

"Look Isabella, I know you're not too happy with us sharing a suite, nor are you overly happy about this job altogether, so I want to make it as painless for you as I can. And I know I have high school to make up for." I took my chances with a smile – an Edward Cullen the person, not Edward Cullen the actor smile.

A small smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. "You've made a pretty good start. Now go choose a room and take some time to unwind before Emmett comes over to eat."

My smile grew. "Yes ma'am."

I shouldered my back pack and grabbed the handle of my suitcase, heading for the door on the far left of the suite, just next to the small kitchen. I walked in and closed the door, dropping my bags and taking a minute to look around…and settle my nerves. The half smile from Bella had given me butterflies in my stomach.

I pulled my iPod out of my bag and set it to play through the small portable speakers I had brought with me, queuing up some Miles Davis.

I unpacked my bag, hanging suits and other crushable stuff in the small closet, and putting t-shirts, pyjamas and underwear in the drawers. I picked up my bag of toiletries and walked back out the door to my room to find Bella reading the hotel compendium. "Anything good?" I asked with a smile.

She looked up and smiled back, rearranging her face to a more professional half-smile a second too late. "There's a couple of restaurants downstairs, two gyms, and a few other things close by."

I nodded. "Sounds good. Have you put your stuff in the bathroom yet?"

"Yep – I took the bottom drawer," she said, turning back to her reading.

I went into the bathroom and closed the door, taking in the giant tub that filled half the room, and the non-hotel shampoo, conditioner and body wash on the glass shelf in the shower. I unpacked my electric razor, deodorant, comb, hair gel and other bits and pieces into the top drawer, dropping my green toothbrush into the caddy next to Bella's purple one.

It was strange how right that looked – two toothbrushes. There had only ever been one in my bathroom – I'd never kept a girl around long enough for her to need to keep a toothbrush at my house.

I shook my head to clear it and headed back through the small living area to my room. "I'm just going to take some time to read for a while," I said to Bella as I walked past her.

I received a soft, "Mmm hmm," in reply so I kept on my way, closing my door behind me.

I lay down on the bed with my well-worn copy of _The Power of One_ and turned to the first page. I tried to get into the story, but all I could thing about was the beautiful brunette reading on the couch.

_Fuck_, I thought. _It's going to be a long four weeks._


	6. Chapter 5

**A/N: **I do not own Twilight – just these crazy versions of Stephenie Meyer's characters that won't leave me alone!

Ok, so no apology will cover how much I suck. And even though my explanation is a real one, it'll sound lame. Bottom line, my laptop has gone to the great calculator field in the sky, and I haven't replaced it, ergo no way to write, unless I'm at work, where I kind of have to…work. (Funny that!)

But an update is here…and it's about time too! If you're reading, thanks for sticking with me. I'm not going to make any grand gestures about when I'll update next, but I'm back to updating on Twitter again (thank the technology gods for iPhone!) so stay tuned!

Happy reading!

Chapter 5

BPOV

Emmett came over and ate dinner in the suite with Edward and me that night, leaving early to start going over Edward's press commitments. The two of us sat in the living area in relatively comfortable silence, watching _In Bruges_ on the in-house movie channel.

It finished at ten and Edward stood, stretched and quietly said goodnight before heading into his room. I switched off the TV, berating myself for being so antsy about the small sliver of stomach that had been exposed when he stretched.

After cleaning my teeth I changed into my favourite pyjamas and slid under the covers of the massive bed. I set the alarm on my phone for 6am and drifted into an uneasy sleep.

As per the norm when I'm sleeping in a hotel, I woke up well before my alarm went off. I considered getting up and hitting the gym, until I remembered that I couldn't go unless Edward came along. Waking him just seemed cruel.

Instead I fished one of my trashy romance novels out of my suitcase, picking up at the point where the two main characters were describing in great detail what they would do to each other, if only she wasn't married and he didn't live on the other side of the country. Not a good idea. The blonde haired, blue eyed male in the book was replaced in my head with bronze hair and… I physically shook my head and placed the book on the floor next to the bed.

Checking the clock I was relieved to see that it was 5:30 – a reasonable time to get up. I threw a sweatshirt on over my pyjamas and pulled on a pair of socks before heading out to the small kitchen to make coffee. Once it was brewing, I opened the door of the suite to retrieve the newspaper from outside.

_Nothing dramatic on the front page – that's always a good start,_ I thought to myself as I closed the door and settled on the couch. _Dare I read the Entertainment section?_

I decided I was brave and flicked through the pages until I came to the Entertainment heading. I dropped the newspaper as though I'd been scalded. Splashed across the front of the Entertainment page was a photo of Jackson Reed in handcuffs. 'Busted – Agent to the Stars Arrested'.

"Fuck," I hissed under my breath as I started reading.

_At approximately 10:45pm last night, entertainment agent Jackson Reed was arrested by LAPD detectives after a six-month operation. Mr Reed stands accused of bribing a number of film companies to hire his clients, as well as having considerable debts to a number of high-profile security firms in the Los Angeles area._

I laid the paper in my lap and stared hard at the wall for a minute. Did I want to call Alice and find out if the retainer had cleared? You bet your ass I did. But I knew if there was a problem she'd let me know.

A soft knock at the door drew my attention away from the wall. I shifted the paper to the couch beside me and stood, walking across the suite. I checked the peephole to find Emmett on the other side, newspaper in hand and a grim look on his face.

I opened the door with a quiet, "Morning," and stood to one side to let him in.

He opened the conversation with an, "Ah."

I gave him a questioning look even though I was pretty sure where he was going.

"You've seen the paper." It was a statement, not a question.

I nodded.

"Has he?"

I shook my head.

"It's going to kill him," Emmett said softly. "He got some less than spectacular reviews for his last film, one critic went as far as to ask who had paid the studio off. This isn't going to go well."

"Could be all three of our careers are going down the toilet," I mumbled. "I don't know if my retainer has been paid."

"Oh shit," Emmett sighed. "I was so busy worrying about him that I didn't think about you. What happens to the contract if you haven't been paid?"

I smiled a wry smile. "Well, I'm not going to leave him without any security. We'll work something out."

We sat in silence for a few minutes, jumping slightly when Edward's door opened.

"Who died?"

Normal snarky me would have replied with, "Your career," but it just seemed inappropriate.

"Come sit," Emmett replied.

"Coffee?" I asked.

They both said yes so I got busy grabbing mugs while Emmett showed Edward the newspaper.

"Motherfucking thundercunt!" he exclaimed.

I couldn't help it – I giggled. It was inappropriate and I knew it, and that only made me laugh harder.

"What?" Edward asked, a smile pulling at the corners of his mouth.

"Thundercunt!" I wailed, collapsing into fresh waves of laughter.

That sent both of them off, and before long all three of us were clutching our sides, slumped in our chairs. Once we calmed down a little, Edward picked up the paper again and read the whole story.

"What do we do now?" he asked, looking from Emmett to me and back again.

Emmett answered before I could. "We call a press conference. We talk to Mountain Crest and get it from them in writing there's nothing shady going on, then you front the media and let them know that you had no knowledge of Reed's misdemeanours."

"And I'm not going anywhere," I assured him. "Now that this is out there, you're going to be more popular than ever. You need me."

He raised an eyebrow. "Arrogant much?" But it came with a smile, which I returned.

"There's going to be press, fans, papps, every man and his fucking dog on your tail now. You're not going to be able to take a leak without someone knowing," I told him. "I'm actually considering calling in someone else from my company to help out."

"Let's not jump to conclusions," Emmett cut in. "I say we do something inconspicuous for breakfast, then I'll get in touch with Mountain Crest and see what we can arrange for today."

Edward got up and made more coffee while the three of us debated breakfast.

"I saw a place on the corner that sells bagels, I wonder if they're open yet?" Emmett suggested, looking at the clock.

I followed his gaze. "It's almost seven, I'd say it's a pretty safe bet. I'll go change and go for a walk – noone's going to recognise me," I suggested, rising from my seat. "You guys make a list of your favourites and I'll be back in ten."

I grabbed a change of clothes from my room then headed for the bathroom and the quickest shower in history. I yanked my hair into a ponytail and threw my pyjamas on my bed, grabbing some money on the way out.

"What are we having?" I asked as I approached the two men sitting quietly on the couch.

Emmett handed me a list and a twenty. I looked down the list and saw all of my favourites listed as well, nodding my approval as I headed for the door. "I'll be back in a bit," I said, pulling it closed behind me.

I walked down the street and into the quiet little shop, ordered our food and returned to the suite within fifteen minutes. I let myself in the door to find Emmett talking quietly on his phone in the corner and Edward reading the funnies on the couch. I placed the bag of bagels on the bench and pulled the wrapped goodies out, checking the labels as I went and passing them around.

Emmett hung up soon after I got back and he wasn't happy. "Mountain Crest will meet with you at ten, they're thinking about kicking you off the film because their association with you could bring them 'into disrepute'.

Edward laughed, a wry sound. "Disrepute? I had no idea about any of this crap!"

"I know, I know," Emmett replied, trying to soothe him. "We'll see what they say."

The rest of breakfast passed quietly, Emmett speaking only after Edward headed for a shower.

"Your friend is a lawyer, right?"

I nodded and swallowed the last mouthful of my bagel. "Yep. Rose is the best. She does all my contracts and she's helped me out of a jam or two. Why?"

"Do you think she'd look over Edward's contract? See if Mountain Crest have grounds to sack him?" Emmett almost sounded desperate.

I smiled and reached out to pat his arm – a very not-me move. "I'm sure she'd be happy to. Things are going to be ok Emmett."

He smiled sadly. "I just want things to go right for him, you know? He gets so much bad press, and I'll be the first to admit he deserves some of it, but he's a good guy. I know he was a jerk to you when we were younger…"

"…but he's changed, I can see that," I cut him off. "We'll get through this, the three of us. Get me copy of his contract and I'll email it to Rose."

"Thanks Bella. I'll be back in a while with all the stuff we need for this morning." Emmett stood and I mirrored him, following him to the door.

"Do I need to come with you guys this morning?" I asked.

"Please?" he answered. "If nothing else, the moral support would be nice."

I closed the door softly behind him and turned around just as Edward emerged from the bathroom.

"Emmett's just gone to get organised for your meeting," I told him, moving to clear the remnants of breakfast.

"I heard him asking you about a lawyer. Does he really think it's that bad?"

I paused before answering. "I think Emmett wants to get all the facts and be as ready as he can be. I don't know enough to know if this is bad or not. But Emmett and I will be here through it all – you're not going to have to do this alone."

He ran a hand through his hair and smiled at me. "Have you always been this awesome?"

I grinned back. "Yep. You were just too up yourself to notice."

Emmett arrived back in our suite a little before nine and told us he'd ordered a car. "It should be here around 9:30. Bella, I've emailed a copy of the contract to you."

I grabbed my iPhone and logged into my email account and forwarded the contract to Rose. I logged out and dialled her office.

"Hale and Associates, Lauren speaking."

I groaned internally. "Lauren, it's Bella, can you put me through to Rosalie please?"

"She's in a meeting Ms Swan, can I take a message."

This time I groaned out loud. "Lauren, this is urgent. I need her legal advice regarding my current client and I need it NOW!"

Silence. Total deafening silence. The only other time I'd yelled at Rose's receptionist she took three days off work on stress leave. I jumped a little when the hold music came on, and flinched when Rose came on the line.

"This better be important Bella – I'm a bee's dick away from securing the biggest case of my career."

"I'm sorry. Have you seen the paper? Reed's been arrested and we think Edward could be royally fucked," I filled her in.

"Ok…still not seeing how I fit into this picture," she replied.

"Mountain Crest are considering tearing up Edward's contract, his media guy needs to know if they can do that or not."

"You're with Emmett McCarty? Hot stuff!" Rose was suddenly more enthusiastic.

"Not the point Rose! I've emailed you the contract, I need to know by ten what the deal is."

"Done. Just let me get these a-holes to sign and I'm on it. Stay close to your phone."

"Thanks chicken – I owe you," I said, and hung up.

I turned to find one pair of brown eyes and one pair of green fixed intently on my face. "She's going to look at it and get back to us."

I left them sitting there and went to change for the day. Jeans, neat shirt, shoes I could run in, and my gun. All I needed.

The phone in the suite rang at twenty past nine and I answered it. "Yes?"

"Ms Swan, the car Mr McCarty ordered is here for you."

"Thank you. I'll be down momentarily." I hung up.

"Car's here?" Emmett asked.

"Yep. I'll go down and get it, and move it into the basement. You two come downstairs in five minutes. If there's a problem, I'll call you."

Five minutes later I was sitting behind the wheel of the rental car in the basement and felt a wave of relief wash over me as the two men walked out of the elevator and got in, Emmett in front, Edward in back.

Emmett directed me to the office building where Mountain Crest had arranged the meeting. I parked the car in a two hour spot across the road and pulled my phone from my pocket to check my email.

It pinged in my hand as an email from Rose landed in my Inbox. I read through it quickly and forwarded it to Emmett. "Rose is happy for you to refer to her as Edward's lawyer. She says Mountain Crest have a get-out clause in there but if it comes down to it, she can fight it because it names Edward specifically, not people he is associated with."

Emmett smiled, the first real smile of the day. "Excellent." He checked his watch. "We should go in."

"Me first," I reminded him, stepping out of the car and checking for potential threats. I walked around the car and motioned for Edward to wind down his window. "You two stay here while I go check the foyer."

I darted across the street and walked into the building, then walked out a moment later, motioning that it was ok to come in.

Emmett walked up to the reception desk and advised who he was and why we were here, and the man behind the desk directed us to the fourth floor with the customary, "They're expecting you."

We reached the office and Emmett stopped me. "Bella, you can't come in. I'm sorry but this needs to stay as professional as it can. Not that I don't think you're professional," he corrected himself, "but you know what I mean."

I nodded and smiled. "No worries. I'll wait out here unless you call me in."

I watched as the door closed.

_What the fuck have I got myself into?_


End file.
